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Max Whittaker, Alan Majcrowicz, Jenny Smith/Unsplash SUMMER 2018 BCA A .COM 15 TIP! If you're tasting wine, plan for a stopover and don't drive. Or, let the passengers taste – and buy a bottle the driver can sample at the hotel. pullouts and points of interest – like Founders Grove, where a 0.8-km walking loop leads to Founder's Tree, a 105-metre-tall behemoth with a trunk that's 12 metres in circumference. Also take a selfie at the Chandelier Tree, which at 96 metres high, 21 metres around and about 2,000 years of age, is one of the biggest and most famous of the giants. You can even drive through it (for a fee – Drive-Thru Tree Park is a privately owned grove) if your vehicle fits in the 1.8-metre-wide opening. Back on the road, take Route 1 to hug the coast, passing kilometre after kilometre of rugged beaches, rocky headlands and charmingly remote seaside communities such as Westport and Fort Bragg. This is Mendocino County, leading to a village of the same name. Just before Westport, stop in at the country's westernmost winery, Pacific Star. Admire the bluff-top view of crashing surf and sample the signature house blend, It's My Fault (red or white; adult passengers only). Or, families can skip the winery and continue to Fort Bragg, making a quick stop for "gem" hunting at Glass Beach, named for its colourful sea-glass pebbles (illegal to remove, so leave them on the beach), before hopping aboard the Skunk Train. This 1885 heritage logging train makes an hour-long round trip, chugging along bridges and meadows, and zigzagging through the redwood-thick Noyo River Canyon. Mendocino Village is made for strolling, its sleepy streets lined with pastel-painted saltbox cottages, rose gardens, picket fences, twisting Cypress trees, antique wooden water towers and adorable artisan boutiques selling everything from pottery and redwood- burl furniture to custom shoes. For a meal with an ocean view, sample locally sourced comfort food like Pacific Cod Chowder at Flow Restaurant & Lounge. Or, soak up village ambiance at community gathering spot Frankie's, known for its organic-flour and gluten-free pizza, as well as ice cream. Flavours range from exotic, like mushroom (made with locally harvested candy cap (top to bottom) Ancient cedars dwarf visitors at Humboldt Redwoods State Park; California's Point Reyes National Seashore offers spectacular cliffside vistas; be sure to go for artisanal ice cream in Tillamook, Oregon or Mendocino, California.

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